Good Cheater
by JessFantasy16
Summary: This is a fic that totally trashes one of my least favorite ships. Ron and Hermione are married and with kids and Harry lives with them because he is heart broken. what will happen when Ginny comes to visit? Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Good Cheater**

**Chapter 1**

_Dear Ron, _

_Hi! How have you been? We've been great here! I trust that you received word of the…event that happened? Please, consider it for me, okay? How is Hermione? And the kids? I was actually thinking of coming out to visit you all sometime soon. I hope that you want to see me as much as I want to see you and 'Mione. I also want to meet my nieces and nephews (I trust that there are quite a few). Get back to me and say hi to everyone for me!_

_Love from your sister,_

_Ginny_

"HEY, Gin! You coming! We're supposed to be there in ten minutes!"

"Yeah! Be down in a sec!" Ginny Weasely finished writing the letter to her brother, put it in an envelope and was about to put a stamp on and address it when she remembered that Ron and Hermione wouldn't get it if she sent it that way. She wondered where she would get an owl that would take it to the Wizarding World….

"Ginny! We've got to go!"

"Honey, you go on without me. I need to finish something. I'll catch up with you later."

"You sure, 'cause I could wait!"

"Yeah! Go on! I'll catch right up with you!"

"'K! See you there." Ginny heard the door close behind her fiancé and relaxed. Now, if she could just find an owl…. She shot a glance at the drawer in her desk that contained her long unused wand. She carefully pulled the drawer open and drew out her wand…. Oh, but it felt good to grip it again after all those years. How long had it been? Oh yes, it had been almost eight years since Ginny Weasely had left the Wizarding World and all her family and friends behind. She had not really noticed it before now, but it was not only the people she cared about that she missed, but also the Wizarding World and magic, too.

She stained her mind to remember the summoning charm and once she thought she had it, she flicked her wrist and summoned an owl. Almost immediately, one appeared by her window. She attached the letter to his lag and said take this to Ron Weasely. When the bird didn't leave right away, she thought that maybe she had done something wrong. Then she remembered, when that owl isn't yours, you must pay him.

But, she didn't have any money that the owl would take. Or did she? She looked back in the same drawer from which she had taken her wand and sure enough, there were three galleons and nine sickles. She gave the owl a galleon and three sickles, hoping that it would be enough. The bird looked extremely happy and took off. She thought that maybe she had given it too much.

She remembered that she had to be somewhere. And soon, too. She hurried to her car and drove off.

"Daddy! When's breakfast gonna be ready?" a whinny voice yelled form the table.

Ron Weasely rolled his eyes and said to his six year old son, Sirius, "Just a minute, Sirry! Daddy's almost done with the scrambled eggs." Silently, he thought to himself, _If your mother was helping me it would go a lot faster, but no! She gets to rest, according to Harry, because she's pregnant again!_ Oh, well. Ron sort of agreed with Harry, okay, he totally agreed that Hermione should rest up. It was just easier to blame some one, at least to himself.

Suddenly, Sirius cried, "Pig!" Ron whipped around to see that there was an owl coming towards the house with a letter tied to its talons.

"That's not Pig, Sirry!" Sirius's twin brother, Albus, said to him. Ron realized that Alby was right. The owl coming towards the house was not the owl that he had gotten from Sirius's namesake when he was thirteen. It was a barn owl and much bigger than Pigweedgen.

As the owl landed on the window sill, Ron grabbed the letter that the bird was holding and he the owl left. Ron turned it over and as soon as he recognized the hand writing, his hand began to tremble. It had to be Ginny's hand writing. Nobody had the same style… He opened the letter and read it. First, his ears turned red due to rage, then, it was just embarrassment. Yes, he and Hermione had a lot of kids, but Ginny didn't have to mock him like that, did she? Maybe, they just wanted kids. Okay, maybe not, but Ron thought that he was a pretty good dad! He couldn't believe that Ginny wouldn't even say "the event". If she was that unsure about it, why was she going through with it? Ron still had the slightest hopes that she would come home to their world and see Harry and marry him.

Ron heard some one come up from behind him and knew that it was Harry. He didn't know what it was, but something made him not tell Harry the truth when he asked who the letter was form. He mumbled some reply about work and then, as if on cue, Sirry shouted that his little sister, Mona, was throwing her scrambled eggs at him. Seeing as Mona was only three, this was not surprising; nevertheless, Ron gave her an extra squeeze after scolding her.

Harry said that he had to get going, said good bye to everyone, much to the children's dismay, and walked out. A few seconds later, a pop was heard, signaling that Harry had apparated.

Ron sighed with relief, and then felt guilty. Should he have told Harry that Ginny had written to Hermione and him? He consoled himself that they weren't even sure if Ginny was going to come. He had to talk it over with Hermione. Knowing her, though, she would insist on having Ginny come. Although she had been disgusted by what Ginny had done, like all the Weaselys, she had never really approved of them not speaking to her at all after the Final Battle. She personally thought that if they had not been so harsh on her, she would have stayed in the Wizarding World. She thought that Ginny had had a lot of promise and that was the other reason that she totally hated-

Ron's thoughts were cut off when Hermione came up to him and snatched the letter out of his hands. "Oh," she exclaimed, "Ginny wants to come and visit?" Ron nodded. He could see that Hermione was just as embarrassed at Ginny's remark about how many children they had as he was. "I think that it would be lovely to see her!" she said enthusiastically.

"But, what about Harry?" Ron asked. They were both very worried about their best friend. He had asked to stay with them offering to help look after the children, but they both knew that it was because he was lonely and didn't want to live alone. Of course, they had agreed, but they had noticed that Harry was steadily getting worse. He had never been the same after the final battle, and he hadn't gone out with a girl since Ginny had left.

Such thoughts made Ron's blood boil. He was so angry at Ginny. It was not only who she had left with, Ron liked to call him "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named II" (Hermione scolded him whenever he used it). What really got to Ron was how scarred she had left Harry. Harry was like a brother to him and it pained Ron to see his best mate so down all the time. The only time he was cheerful was around the children. They loved him and e loved them back. He often told Ron how thankful he was to him, because the children were the only joy in his life.

"We don't have to tell him that she's coming." Ron was snapped back to reality.

"There's no guarantee that she'll come even if we ask her to." The pleading look in Hermione's eyes was what made him agree. That girl could make him do anything.

"I guess. Yeah. Ad we had better not tell her that Harry is here, either."

Hermione nodded in agreement and then turned to the children. "Would you guys like to meet your Aunt Ginny?"

A loud agreement met her ears, and that seemed to decide it. They would ask Ginny to come, not tell Harry about it, and not tell Ginny about Harry.

_Who is the mysterious person that Ginny is engaged to? Mwah ha ha! You will have to keep reading to find out! _

_Please R&R_

_This is my first fanfic, so be gentle, but constructive criticism is greatly valued!_


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry! I forgot to do a disclaimer on my last chapter! This one is chapters 1 and 2.

I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters. The story is mine!

**Chapter 2**

When Ginny got the reply letter from Ron, she had been kind of unsure of whether he had said anything but foul words. She began to have a bit higher hopes when she realized that it was not a howler (she was really getting back into this magic thing!). When she read it, she had been so happy that Ron and Hermione wanted to see her, too. She was also thrilled that her nieces and nephews were as eager to meet her as she was them. In the letter, Ron made sure that they were clear and her fiancé, who Ro had called a not so flattering name, wasn't coming.

Ginny was now packing and her fiancé was being just as bad as her brother.

"I don't see why you have to go see anyone in your family let alone….. Ron," his shudder was visible. She was starting to get annoyed.

"Look, Draco, you may never want to see your family again, and you may not even consider them family, but I had to leave my family for you and I have missed them." Then, more quietly, "I've also missed the Wizarding World."

"What!" he stormed at her, "You miss our old world? How could you? We promised that we would never go back there!"

"I don't ever remember making that promise," she shot back at him, "We decided that we would wait until we wanted to settle down to decide. You may have only bad memories there, but I have very good memories there. I miss everything about it. I think that we should go back there when we are married."

He stared at her, shocked. "Why?" was all he could say.

Ginny sighed. He obviously wasn't getting what she was trying to say. "Because, our children are going to be enrolled in Hogwarts, anyway. And I really do miss it there."

For a second, she thought that he was finally understanding. Then, "Ginny Weasely! You think that I would go back there after what happened to me there! Seriously! And, not only do you want to go back there, but you want to visit that git brother of yours, Ron, and that wife of his who is no better than dirt! I mean, come on, Ginny! She's a mud" He stopped himself.

"See, even you still use some of the terms and remember people like that. Don't tell me that you don't still look down on my family and Hermione, because I know you do. Now, Malfoy, if you don't mind, I'm going to visit my brother!" She pushed him out of the way. She had expected to feel bed, but she actually felt good, like she used to after telling him off at school. She stopped herself. No! Malfoy was her fiancé now. She loved him… right?

Ron was starting to get nervous. He was seeing his little sister for the first time in years. Today was the day that Ginny was coming. He was also worried about her reaction when she saw Harry, but more importantly, Harry's reaction when he saw her. Ron had voiced his concerns to Hermione only to get the "I'm-pregnant-don't-bother-me" look.

Ron had been about to tell Harry the truth, only to get scared. He didn't want to see the hurt look on Harry's face, even though he knew it would be worse to wait. He had told Harry that he was taking the day off to help Hermione, and Harry had gone off to work. Ron only wished that Harry would get home before Ginny arrived. Otherwise, it would be an even bigger shock.

"Daddy! You've gotta take us to school!" Ron's eldest child, Jessica, said. Ron was jarred from his thoughts and told the four of his children that were school aged to get into the car. Ron and Hermione had decided to send their children to a school for magic children to go to before Hogwarts. Ron sighed and followed his children into their flying car.

It was now 5:54, exactly. Harry usually got home at 6:00, in time for dinner and helping the kids with their homework. Ginny had said that she would be there between 5:30 and 6:00. Ron was getting antsy.

"Relax," Hermione said, "what's the worst that could happen?"

"Harry could commit suicide," Ron said. It came out sarcastic, although that was not how he meant it.

"That's not funny." Hermione glared at him.

They heard the doorbell ring. This was a definite sign that it was Ginny. Harry had his own key to the house and always let himself in; he was basically part of the family. Ron pleaded silently that Harry had forgotten his key as he made is way to the door.

When he opened the door, he saw a dashingly beautiful young woman with bright red hair, fair skin, and freckles, just like him. This was definitely Ginny. A grown up and more mature Ginny, but still his baby sister. It was not until that exact moment that Ron realized how much he had missed his only sister. That just made him all the more mad. But, he kept his promise to Hermione and did not blow up in her face as the first thing he said to her.

"Hi, Ginny! It's great to see you. We're so glad that you could come." Ron gave her a hug and helped her carry her luggage into their home.

"Hi, Ron! It's great to see you, too!" This house is beautiful!" She hugged Ron back. She truly had missed him. She saw a very pregnant Hermione come out of the kitchen, squealed, and ran to hug her. "Oh my god, Hermione! It's great to see you!" She hugged Hermione as gently as possible, which was hard, considering how excited she was.

"Hey, Ginny! Welcome to our humble abode!" She led Ginny into the kitchen, leaving Ron to lug her stuff upstairs. As she entered the kitchen, Ginny was instantly reminded of the burrow. There was food cooking itself on the stove, dishes washing themselves in the sink, and a very big table set with eleven places.

"Gee! You and Ron really _did_ get busy! I mean, I expected a lot of kids, but ten!" Ginny could not hold in her disbelief. They had only been married eight years.

"Oh, no! We only have seven children!" Hermione told her.

"Then why is the table set for eleven?" Ginny asked, confused.

Before Hermione could answer, the door opened and Harry came in, yelling, "I'm home!" Ginny heard many squeals and yells of happiness as the Weasley children ran down the stairs, screaming, "Uncle Harry, Uncle Harry!" Then, a tall, strikingly handsome man came into the kitchen. He looked like the Pied Piper for all seven of Ron and Hermione's children were following him. He looked exactly as she remembered, with his messy black hair and piercing green eyes. As he looked up, he froze and his expression of surprise mirrored how she felt. Obviously, he had not been expecting this, either.

Ron hurried into the kitchen to find that he was too late. They had already seen each other. "Sorry, Harry," he mumbled, "we should have told you. You too, Ginny."

"That's okay, Ron. Hey, Gin. Good to see ya." Ginny could tell that Harry was trying to be as cheerful as possible. "I just remembered, I, ah… I'm goin' out tonight. Tell the kids that I'm sorry and that maybe their aunt Ginny can help them. They should get to know her." And with that, her turned on his heel and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

As Harry walked out of the house, he didn't know where he was going, he just knew that he had to get away to think. Through his confusion, anger, and hurt, he couldn't help but think how nice she had looked.

_Okay! That's chapter two! Hoped everyone liked it! I won't be able to post for a while because it is winter break and I am going away. Hey, a couple of days ago, it was my birthday! What do I want for my birthday? Reviews! Happy Holidays, all! _


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Dinner that night at the Weasley house was very awkward. Ron was being as hostile to Ginny as possible to punish her for what he saw as unforgivable. In his eyes, the only thing that Ginny could do to redeem herself was to say that she was sorry to everyone in their family, everyone in the Order, and, most importantly, to Harry. Then, she should beg for him to take her back. It was only if she did this that he would ever forgive her, totally. Whether Harry chose to take her back was a different story. Ron thought that he had every right not to. But, seeing how Harry still loved Ginny, Ron didn't know why, he probably would take her back, but 'only if it would make her happy'. Geez! Harry was way too perfect.

Anyway, back to the dinner scene. Hermione was being as polite as possible to Ginny, but she hadn't seen her for so long and Ginny lived in such a totally different world, that they had very little to talk about. When she wasn't attempting conversation with Ginny, Hermione was glaring at Ron for being such a git to his only sister who he was seeing for the first time in eight years.

Ginny answered all the questions that Hermione asked her, but they hadn't seen each other on so long that she didn't know what they could talk about. And it didn't help that Ron kept on giving her the evil-eye, even though she had been expecting that. Ron probably still hated Draco. Having left on a not so good note with her fiancé, Ginny was finding it easier to sympathize with Ron. Then, she stopped herself and realized that if she didn't sympathize with Draco, no one would.

All the children were starring at Ginny, kind of wide-eyed. Besides their grandma, this was the only Weasley woman, with the red hair and all. By now, she was pretty sure that she knew all their names. First, there was Jessica, the oldest and eight years old. Then, there were the twins, Sirius and Albus, who were six years old. Next, was William, who was five years old. Next came the other set of twins, Molly and Allison, who were three years old. Finally, there was the youngest, Thomas, who was about eighteen month.

The kids looked as though they hadn't known about their Aunt Ginny until she had walked through the door. Or, if they had known about her, it was only her name and they didn't know anything about her, which they didn't. She really wanted to get to know them. They probably didn't know about what she had done, so she hoped. She also hoped that they would give her a fresh start. They wouldn't judge her as the rest of her family did. They had nothing to judge, to them, she was just Aunt Ginny, not the traitress who married our enemy.

After dinner, the children excused themselves to go work on homework and the such. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny sat for a while in uncomfortable silence until Hermione excused herself to do the dishes. When Ginny offered to help, Hermione shooed he away, saying that she was their guest that they hadn't seen for a very long time and that she should relax and catch up with her brother. Sure. Like that was going to happen. Ron was still glaring at her. She saw a look pass between Hermione and Ron in which Hermione seamed to tell Ron, "be nice and catch up with your baby sister." And for that, Ginny was grateful to Hermione because the death glare that she gave Ron stopped him glaring at her and he put on a sort of sheepish look. They sat for a while in awkward silence. Then, when she couldn't stand it anymore, Ginny said, "So, your kids seem really nice…" she trailed off. This was harder than she had thought. She didn't even want to think about how much more awkward it would be if her whole family were here.

She thought that he would never respond, he obviously thought that she deserved the silent treatment, then, "Yeah, they're great, 'Mione and I have been blessed." She saw him smile. He obviously loved his kids very much. She felt herself smile at just that. She so wanted to have kids, if only to have that feeling of loving someone so much that you would do anything for them.

She wanted to ask him if they knew her story, but didn't know how. She decided to just ask outright. "Do they know…" She couldn't finish. But, when he responded, she knew that he had known what she had meant.

"No. They don't know. They were so excited about meeting you. I hope that you will be a better aunt to them than you were a sister and a daughter to us." He had touched on a tender spot, but they had to have this talk at some point and get their feelings, or else they would never be comfortable with each other.

"I know how you feel, but you truly love Hermione, right?" She got a nod of acknowledgement from him. "And you would do anything to be with her, right?" Another nod. "That is just how I felt about Draco. Is that so wrong?"

"It's different! Ginny, Hermione wasn't a Death Eater who betrayed us and got Dumbledore killed! Hermione was on the good side! Also, it wasn't just what you did; it was the effect of what you did on Harry, also! Did you even think about he would feel when you just up and left with the traitor when you and he had had plans for after the war. Luckily, he didn't find out until after he defeated Voldemort, or else he would have let himself be killed. He still loved you and still defended you when we were talking about what you did. No matter how you say it, you ruined how he felt about love. He hasn't gone out with anyone since, not because he didn't have the opportunity, But because he was too scared to get hurt again. At the begging, he hoped that you would come back, but he soon lost hope. Lucky for him, he has the Weasley family and our kids!" He let it sink into her. She had known all this, but had stored it in the back of her mind. Whenever it came up, she would push it deeper, giving herself excuses. Now that it hit her in the face, she felt like the dirtiest, most selfish person in the world.

I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so, so, so, sorry," she moaned. She knew it didn't do anything.

"Sorry doesn't always fix things, Gin. Anyway, you shouldn't apologize to me. You should apologize to Harry." And beg him to take you back! Ron thought to himself. She seemed so bewildered as if she had never thought of it that way before. Ron had no sympathy for her. She deserved it all.

"Daddy?" a small voice said from the door. "Why are you yelling at Aunt Ginny?" Oh, no, thought Ginny. He's going to tell her.

"Oh, it's nothing, Ally. We were just… discussing something. What is it, dear?" Hinny was so thankful that he hadn't told her. She sighed with relief.

"They sent me to ask you guys something'" She seemed nervous and a little shy.

"Well, what is it, sweetie?"

"Since Uncle Harry isn't here, we were thinking that, maybe, Aunt Ginny could read us our bed time story?" She seemed satisfied with herself. She looked up hopefully at Ginny.

"Sure, Allison! I'd love to read to my nieces and nephews." This was her chance of escape.

"Thanks, Aunt Ginny!"

"Ally, you go on up and help everyone choose a book. Aunt Ginny will be up soon, 'k?" Ron wanted to say one final thing to Ginny. Ginny wasn't looking forward to what her older brother would say.

Allison smiled and ran up stair. As she reached the top, they could just hear her triumphant voice saying, "See! I told you that she would!" Ron turned around and looked at Ginny. "We're not done here. This conversation will continue later." And with that, he turned and went back into the kitchen. She heard Hermione say to him, "It's okay, Ronnie. Don't be so judgmental." She decided that this must be the time of night that they were usually alone, when Harry was reading to the children. She made her way up the stairs.

As she reached the top of the stairs, Ginny had to blink and check to make sure that she was seeing things correctly. From the stairs, it had seemed that the upstairs was kind of small with about six small rooms and a bathroom. But, when she reached the top of the stairs, she saw that the upstairs was actually quite big. There were still six bedrooms, but they were a lot bigger that they had looked from the stairs. And there were two bathrooms, the one that she had seen from the stairs and the master bath off of the master bedroom. She thought that maybe she had just not seen it right the first time, but then she remembered that she was in a magical hose. It must have been like the wizard tents that they had used camping and at the Quittich World Cup when she was a girl. This brought back a flood of memories. She had to stop and lean against the wall, the emotions were running so high. Then, a voice behind her said, "Aunt Ginny? Are you okay?"

She turned around to find the oldest child, Jessica, behind her. "Yeah, I'm fine, Jessica. Have you guys chosen a book that you want me to read to you?"

"Well..." Jessica looked a little embarrassed. "We were hoping that maybe you could tell us a story of when you and Daddy and Mum and Uncle Harry were younger. See Mum and Dad always say that they will tell us and they never do. And we're not supposed to ask Uncle Harry, at least, that's what Mum and Dad said. So, could you?"

Ginny knew that Ron and Hermione might get mad at her, but she couldn't resist the looks of her little nieces and nephews who had come up behind their sister. "Sure. I would love to. What do you guys want to hear about?"

"Well, we were wondering if you could tell us about the Triwizard Tournament. We heard about it once and we heard that Uncle Harry won it…" Ginny hesitated. "It's okay if you don't want to…"

"No, it's fine. I would love to tell you guys about it." And when she saw their little faces light up, she knew that it was worth any of the pain it would cause her.

She went into what appeared to be Sirius and Albus's room. She sat down on one of their beds. The kids sat around her on the floor. "The first thing that you need to know about the Tournament is that there weren't only three wizards in it, as the name suggests. There were four.

_There we go! Chapter three! Yay it's up! What will the kids learn? Keep reading to find out. Sorry this took so long to get up! My goal is to get up a chapter up every week. But, exams are coming up… I'll try my bestest! You guys deserve it! Thanks for the reviews! I now have seven! Wow! Seven! Thanks again! _

_JessFantasy16 _


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Sorry, I keep forgetting to do these! This is for Chapter three and this chapter. I do not own any of the characters except for the children, I made them up. The story is also mine. The twins' names, Sirius and Albus, are not mine, either. All that is not mine belongs to the great J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter Four**

And so, Ginny told her nieces and nephews about the Triwizard Tournament. She often had to stop and make her sentences simpler. She wasn't used to talking around kids. Telling them that story brought back memories. To her great relief, most of the memories were happy, not painful. The ones that did hurt were the ones about Sirius, Dumbledore, and Harry. The children really seemed to enjoy the story and she was glad that they were finally learning about their parent and their friends.

When she had finished, Jessica said, "Aunt Ginny? Are you okay?"

Ginny realized that she had been crying. She reassured the children that she was fine and told them to get into bed. She said good night, promising to send their parents up to tuck them in.

She made her way downstairs and went into the kitchen to get her brother and Hermione. When she found that they weren't there, she proceeded into the living room and found them sitting together on the sofa. They were holding hands and Hermione was resting her head on Ron's chest. They looked so peaceful that Ginny didn't want to disturb them. She tried to back out of the room without making a lot of noise, but they had already realized her presence.

"It's okay, Ginny. Do the kids want us to come up and say goodnight?" Hermione lifted her head from Ron's chest.

"Yeah. Sorry to bother you." She really did feel bad.

"Oh, it's no big deal." Hermione heaved herself to her feet and strode past Ginny and out of the living room. Ginny looked apprehensively at Ron, expecting him to start yelling at her again. Instead, he came over and gave her a big bear hug.

Ginny was surprised. "Was that of your own accord or did Hermione tell you to do that?" She smiled at him

"A little bit of both. Gin, even though we are angry at you, we still love you." And with that, he went upstairs to say goodnight to his children. Ginny was presently surprised. She had not only come on this visit to meet her nieces and nephews, but to also bridge the gap between her and the rest of her family. She just hoped the Ron realized that.

She sat down on the couch, lost in her own thoughts. She sat there until Hermione came down to tell her that she and Ron were going to bed. Ginny nodded, saying that she would go up to bed soon, too. She did really mean to go upstairs soon, but she got lost in her thoughts. She was just thinking of how nice it would be when her family was not mad at her anymore. That led her to the wedding, because she wanted them all to be at her wedding. Then the thoughts that were brand new to her came streaming in. She had only thought _her_ wedding. Not her and Draco's. Did that mean that she still wasn't sure if she wanted to marry him? She had always known that they would get married at some point after they had run off together. She had never really thought about the actual wedding until now. It had always seemed like a thing that was faraway and would never happen, at least not to her.

She was torn from her thoughts when she heard the door open and slam shut. It had to be Harry, everyone else was in bed. She was going to go and apologize to him, but he came to her, himself. He walked into the living room, obviously not expecting her to be there. He saw her, looked surprised, then said, "Oh, hey Ginny. Sorry to disturb you. Um, I'm just gonna go to bed. I'll see ya tomorrow."

"Uh, yeah. See ya," Ginny stammered after him. He was walking up the stairs, this was her chance! Too late. He closed the door to the bathroom and she was left to her musings.

She had expected to hear coolness in his voice, but there was none. He had just been far away. Maybe even a little disappointed. _Well,_ she thought to herself, _he has a right to be disappointed in me, I guess. _But, then again, he had a right to be cool to her, too. Yet, he just was disappointed, faraway, and maybe even a little… was that fear in his voice? Was he scared of her? She guessed that he probably had a right to feel that, too. She had "scarred" him, in the words of her brother. Ron had made it pretty clear that Harry had never gotten over what she had done to him. What had she done to him? She had broken his heart, that's what she had done. She had left him after they had promised each other that, after the war, they would be together.

This got her to thinking about why she had left him. The obvious answer seemed to be that she had loved Draco more, but when she tried to reason that way with her conscience, she did not truly mean it. Her heart was not in what she said when she said that she loved Draco. Did that mean that she didn't love him? If she didn't love him, then why had she gone with him just to hurt Harry and get hostility from her family? Pity. She pitied Draco. She had felt so sorry for him when he had broken down and told her how he felt. She remembered perfectly, the night that they were both imprisoned by Voldemort. She, as bait for Harry, Hermione, and her family. Him as punishment for trying to run away. He had told her how he had never wanted to be a death eater. How he had tried to escape when he saw that the good side was the side to be on. How he wanted to get away from the Wizarding World and escape all the bad memories that were there; the memory of his own father trying to kill him, the memories of all he had done and participated in… it was just too much for him. She had believed him fully because of the way he said it. When he told her that he loved her, it was too much for her to bear. She told him that she had Harry, but he had said that he would get her, and he had, right?

She was aroused from her thoughts when Harry walked into the room in his boxers and a T-shirt. Ginny blushed and looked away. "Sorry," she said, "I didn't know that you were coming back down."

He looked at her, confused. "Why wouldn't I come down? This is where I'm going to sleep while you're here. Didn't Ron or Hermione tell you?"

She shook her head, no. Nobody had told her were she would be sleeping. She had assumed that it would be in the guest room, but when she had realized that was where Harry must sleep, she had just assumed that the bed that was made up in the living room was for her. "I thought that I would be sleeping down here," she explained this to him.

"Why would we make our guest sleep down here in the cold? Nobody told me, either, but I have enough sense to know that you're sleeping in my room while I sleep down here. I cleaned it up and remade the bed. It's a really nice bed. Your stuff is up there. The bathroom is at the very end of the hall, the same hall that your bedroom is in." He smiled at her, sadly. She hadn't remembered how that smile made her feel, with those piercing, green eyes looking into yours… It still made her go weak at the knees.

She realized that he was waiting for her to do something. He probably wanted her to leave so that he could go to bed. "Sorry, for putting you out of your room. I didn't know…," she trailed off, realized that she was making a fool of herself, and got up. "Goodnight, Harry." She tried to put as much meaning into that statement as she could. Than, she went up the stairs, this time preparing herself for the way that the hall got bigger with the rooms on either side of it. It still unnerved her. She walked into Harry's room. It was very nice looking. It was neat and there was a rather large bed sort of to the left side as you walked in. There was also a desk with lots of papers on it. Ginny could tell that it was usually very messy, but Harry had cleaned it up, hastily.

Ginny got her toiletries from her bag and went down the hallway and into the bathroom. She brushed her teeth and washed her face. She got ready for bed and went back into her room. She changed into her pajamas and got into the bed, brushing her long, red hair.

After she brushed her hair, she tried to read, but discovered that she was quite tired. She turned off all the lights in the room and got back under the covers. She had not realized that she was so tired. She fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

When Ginny woke up the next morning and looked at her watch, it was to find that it was already 8:07 am. Ginny sat up in bed, groaned because the light that steamed in the many windows blinded her, and slid her feet out of bed. She had expected the floor to be cold, like it was at home, but, to her surprise and great delight, she found that the floor was warm. Ginny smiled to herself. Ron and Hermione were obviously doing very well, financially.

She went into the bathroom, took a shower, brushed her teeth, got dressed, and dried her hair. When she was finished, she went downstairs just in time to say goodbye to the children as Ron was getting ready to take them to school.

Ron smiled at her and told her to help herself to breakfast and that Hermione was in the living room, she was staying home because she needed to rest. He told her that they would see her that night and left with the kids.

Ginny went into the kitchen, helped herself to the rest of the porridge, and poured herself a glass of orange juice. Then, she took her breakfast into the living room and found Hermione sitting on the couch, as if she was expecting Ginny. She looked up and asked, "Are they all gone?"

Ginny nodded, yes.

Hermione heaved a sigh of relief and gestured for Ginny to join her on the couch. Then, she pulled her self into a sitting position, much like the way they would have sat at Hogwarts, together on a comfy couch in the Gryffindor common room. She looked at Ginny very solemnly and said, "Gin, we need to talk."

_Okay, gang! Here's chapter four! I'm so sorry that it took so long, but I did give you fair warning. I had exams all last week! But, I have eleven reviews! Hehehe! We're in the double digits! Yay! So, in order to get more reviews, I have some questions and I would greatly appreciate them answered… through reviews! I know, I'm a genius! So, here are some questions:_

_What jobs should Ron, Hermione, and Ginny have? Harry is, obviously, an Auror. Should Ron be an Auror, too? I want him to work at the ministry. Should Hermione work there, too? I don't really know of any other jobs in the Wizarding World… And what should Ginny do? Remember, it is not magical and does not involve young kids. _

_What do you think of the kids? I always imagined Ron and Hermione having a lot of kids… but, did I over do it? I had to make them young because I didn't want Harry and Ginny to be too old…_

_Should Ron, Hermione, and their kids have a pet?_

_What do you think of it so far? Seriously? I want to know! _

_So… hope you enjoyed it! Please keep reading and reviewing! It won't be as long next time! I promise! _


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from the original Harry Potter books. I don't own any of the events mentioned from the original books. But, I own the new characters: the children and a new character… but I don't want to spoil the surprise… I also made up the story…. The credit for everything that is not mine goes to J.K. Rowling, the wonderful inventor of Harry and his friends, and enemies.

**Chapter Five**

Ginny looked at Hermione apprehensively. She knew Hermione too well, even though she hadn't seen her friend in eight years. She knew that once the "talk" was started, she wouldn't be set free until Hermione knew everything that she wanted to know. She and Hermione had actually been quite close before the final battle. They had had many talks together, each being like the sister that the other had never had. It had been quite a comfort for Ginny, knowing that there was always someone to talk to, and she knew that Hermione had felt the same way.

But, if there was one thing that Ginny remembered about almost all of their chats, it was that Hermione always got it out of you, whatever "it" was. Ginny knew that Hermione had not changed _that_ much. That thought scared her a bit. She didn't know if she wanted Hermione to know everything. But, at the same time, if Hermione hadn't changed much, that also meant that she was the same compassionate, understanding friend that Ginny remembered her as. Maybe even more so, since she was now a mom.

Ginny decided that she wanted to talk to Hermione. She realized that she had missed her friend. She sat down opposite Hermione, pulling herself into the position that she would have sat in as a student at Hogwarts. Hermione looked at her, satisfied. Ginny waited for her to start the conversation.

After a couple of awkward minutes spent staring at each other, they both burst out laughing, realizing they had both thought that the other would start the conversation. Ginny felt very relieved after the outburst. It had lessened the tension that now formed between her and Hermione.

"Well, that was quite… funny," Hermione said, once her giggles had subsided. Ginny nodded her agreement. "So, what have you been up to?" Hermione inquired.

"I don't know… what do you want to know about. It _has_ been eight years," Ginny reasoned.

"Well," Hermione thought for a moment. "I guess we'll start small, okay?"

"Sound good to me," Ginny hoped that by the time they got to the "bigger" things, the tension between the two of them would be gone. That would certainly make it easier.

"Okay, where are you guys living now?" Hermione looked genuinely interested. "I mean, I know that you are in the United States, but where? It's a big country."

"It is." The U.S. was much bigger than their homeland, England. "We live in a stat called Massachusetts. It's in the Northeast part of the country. We live in a town called Newton. We live pretty close to a big city called Boston." Ginny genuinely liked her new home. It was quite nice there.

"Wow. Sounds nice."

"Yeah, it is. We have an apartment there. It's actually quite roomy. I really like it there. But, I definitely miss England."

Hermione smiled at that. "Is your apartment close to where you work?"

"Yeah, it is." When Hermione looked at her expectantly, she continued, "I work for the _Boston Globe_, a newspaper there. I write articles for the "Style" section. I really enjoy it. What do you, Ron, and Harry do?"

"Well, I work in the Discovery and Creation of New Spells Department. I also do a lot of research for the ministry. But, as you can see, at the moment I'm not going to work." She looked at her large belly fondly and then back at Ginny. "Ron works at the ministry, too and so does Harry. Ron works in the Magical Games and Sports Department. He has a lot of fun there, and he gets to meet famous players. And you'll never guess what Harry does at the ministry." Hermione had always been good at pulling off sarcasm.

Ginny knew what Harry did. Everyone had known that he wanted to be an Auror and that he would be a very good one. "He's an Auror."

"Yep, you named it. He's one of the best, even though there haven't been many big threats since You-Know-Who. Just stray Death Eaters and the like. Anyways, enough with pleasantries, there's something that you have to tell me." Hermione already knew that Ginny was engaged to Draco and Ginny knew it. She also knew that Hermione wanted to hear her say it. Not to torture her, but to make sure that it was what Ginny wanted.

When Ginny didn't reply, Hermione said, "I noticed that you aren't wearing a ring, so I wondered if you really wanted to go through with it. I know why you left, and it wasn't because you loved him."

So, Hermione knew. Ginny had left with Draco because she pitied him. "I pitied him. His own father wanted him dead, he was deeply hurt…" she trailed off.

"Ginny, look at me. I'm not doing this to make you miserable. If you don't love him, why marry him? It is good that you don't want to hurt him, but is that worth hurting yourself even more? You are also hurting someone else a lot more by staying with Draco. Harry is scarred. But, I think it's too late for you. He's better now." Hermione was truly worried about Ginny. She didn't want Ginny to be unhappy. Why was she putting herself through this, anyway? It was not helping anyone, not even Draco.

"I don't know. This is actually the first time I've really thought of it this way." Ginny was utterly confused. When she was with Draco, these thoughts had never really crossed her mind. It was really weird.

Hermione, seeing Ginny's confusion, came to a sudden realization. "Ginny, do you remember leaving with Draco. The actual agreeing to go with him and leaving. Do you remember it?" she asked abruptly.

Ginny, a little scared by her friend's outbreak strained to remember it. It had always been hazy to her, never quite clear. "I don't remember it really, but that was eight years ago."

Hermione cursed under her breath and got up.

What is it?" Ginny asked. But, Hermione was busy rummaging through a drawer in the living room.

Suddenly, she gave a triumphant "aha!" and came back to the couch with what appeared to be a… phone?

"Hermione, is that a phone?" Ginny asked in disbelief. Why did Hermione have that muggle appliance?

"Yeas, it is. What's your home phone number?"

"Why do you want to know my number?"

"Ginny…" something in Hermione's tone made Ginny answer. She told Hermione her number and watched as she dialed it and put it up to her ear. Suddenly, Hermione slammed the phone down angrily and cursed again, this time louder. "Stupid muggles! Why the hell do you have to do something extra for a long distance call!" Ginny was about to explain it to her when she realized that Hermione was just venting her frustration. "C'mon, Gin. We have to pay you fiancé a call." The way Hermione said it sent shivers down Ginny's spine. What was Hermione going to do?

Hermione dragged Ginny into the room that Ginny had been sleeping in and placed her before what appeared to be an ordinary mirror. She was about to yell something at the mirror when something appeared on the surface. "What now!" Hermione was obviously annoyed. Ginny would have found seeing her extremely pregnant friend this fired up funny, but she was very confused at the moment.

As the picture on the mirror became clearer, Ginny realized that it was an extremely short man. She had thought, at first that he was a goblin, but later realized that he was, in fact, human.

"Ms. Granger?" the little man inquired, peering out at them.

"Yes?" Hermione replied, trying not to look too peeved.

"Padfoot is ready to be picked up." The man looked a bit ruffled.

Hermione immediately became more serene. "Is he alright?" She seemed worried.

"Oh, he's better, alright," the man said, looking a bit annoyed, himself. "Had a bit o' fun this mornin', he did. Don't know if we'll ever get the stains out…"

"Sorry. I'll help you clean up as soon as I get there."

"'S alright, ma'am. Just come and get your little beast before he causes any more damage."

Hermione looked a little sheepish as she said, "Yes, I'll be right there." As the man started to disappear in the mirror, Hermione turned to Ginny and said, "I've got to go. Just tell the mirror that you want to talk to Draco."

"But, what-"

Hermione cut Ginny off. "I just have to go. I'll explain later. Just ask Draco what he was thinking putting a memory charm on you." And with that, she left Ginny there to figure out the mirror for herself.

Ginny turned to the mirror and was about to ask it about Draco when she realized what Hermione had said. Memory charm? Then, it hit her. She hadn't left with Draco voluntarily, He had forced her to come with him and then put a memory charm on her so that she would forget what had happened. What a jerk!

"Show me Draco Malfoy," she shouted at the mirror. Now, she was mad.

As the image began to focus on Malfoy, the door slammed downstairs, but Ginny was too angry to notice.

Harry walked into the house to hear shouting upstairs. He didn't know who it was and he could hear it from anywhere in the house, so he went upstairs to see what was going on. He found Ginny in front of Hermione latest invention yelling at a familiarly awful face, Draco Malfoy's.

_Soo… I broke my promise, sorry! I won't even try to give you excuses… Hopefully you guys will forgive me and keep on reading and reviewing. On that note, I have 21 reviews! Can you believe it! I'm sooooooo happy! Well, that was a tense chapter… There were some awkwardly worded sentences, sorry about that. I forgot to ask if you thought that Ginny and Draco should live in a different country, so I decided that they would live in the U.S. What do you think of that, seriously. Why did I choose Massachusetts? Because I love it there and it is where my family is from. It was quite amazing how people agreed on what jobs should be. About five people said that Ron should work in the Magical games and Sports Department, which I totally agree with. About two people thought that Hermione should be a researcher and about the same number thought Ginny should be some type of journalist (I chose the _Boston Globe _because it is one of the only newspapers I know of in Boston…) Others thought that Ginny should be a doctor or a nurse, but I personally liked the Journalist idea better. Finally, May I just say that you people have very little faith. Don't worry. I'll try to make it work out with Harry and Ginny to your liking. Of course, I cannot promise a great ending, which is why I am not a professional, but I will do my best! Please keep reading and reviewing! _

_JessFantasy16_


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